I'll Give You the Sun Review

Jude and her twin brother, Noah, are incredibly close. At thirteen, isolated Noah draws constantly and is falling in love with the charismatic boy next door, while daredevil Jude cliff-dives and wears red-red lipstick and does the talking for both of them. But three years later, Jude and Noah are barely speaking. Something has happened to wreck the twins in different and dramatic ways . . . until Jude meets a cocky, broken, beautiful boy, as well as someone else—an even more unpredictable new force in her life. The early years are Noah's story to tell. The later years are Jude's. What the twins don't realize is that they each have only half the story, and if they could just find their way back to one another, they’d have a chance to remake their world.

My Opinion:

I'll Give You the Sun is my first Jandy Nelson novel, and I must say I am in love with her writing. When I first started reading her novel, I was a little apprehensive of her writing style. She uses a boatload of imagery to relay to the reader how the character reacted and what he or she was feeling. I quickly grew used to the style, and flew through the novel.

Jude and Noah are twins, and they have the ability to finish each other sentences , and know when something is wrong with the other. Jude acts like Noah's protector due to Noah's quietness and his strong interest in painting and drawing. He isn't athletic or outgoing like the other guys who Jude tends to associate with. Jude finds herself closer to her father, while Noah and their mother are attached to the hip. As the twins grow older, Jude finds herself longing for more attention from her mother. She becomes more rebellious and begins dressing scantily all for a reaction from her mother. Meanwhile, Jude and Noah's unbreakable relationship is falling apart. Then the inevitable happens. Jude begins questioning if she will ever be able to live the life she once lived before.

The novel is split in chapters from Noah's perspective and Jude's perspective. Noah's perspective focuses on the time when he and Jude were 13 and 14, while Jude's focuses more on the present time when they are 16. I usually enjoy novels written in split perspective, but I felt that the chapters were too long. I found myself having trouble remembering what had happened the last time one of them spoke.

I would highly recommend I'll Give You the Sun due to it's ability to portray one's guilt, and how it takes a lot of courage to own up to your mistakes. I feel like a lot of people will be able to connect to Jude, because we have all probably done something in order to gain the attention of someone. The novel also incorporates the theme of jealousy, and how it can lead us down the wrong path. I am definitely planning on reading The Sky is Everywhere, so if any of you have read the novel feel free to leave a comment with your thoughts!